ROXY -- WEST HOLLYWOOD, CA -- 6/12/99

Review by Ron Hromoko (Switch to
)6/13/1999

LA has a unique ambiance for TR-i shows, as does chicago, san francisco,
new york, and reportedly, cleveland. i thought it was just coincidence
after a few tours, but last night the pattern again manifested itself,
though not as pronounced.

it's always been this writer's opinion that the time TR spent here in
the early seventies left an impression on the way he feels about the area.
add to that his disdain for record companies and the entertainment industry
throughout the years, and you get some interesting shows here.

i think Todd Rundgren tries a little harder when performing in LA.

the roxy is small, perhaps even smaller than club bene down the shore
or even the firehouse in ballard. it's a squared diamond room with the
stage facing diagonal to a standing pit with a few tables up toward
the back only around 15 feet from the stage. bottled water? $3.50.

though a soundcheck was heard just after 8pm, they loaded us in and
started set one just after 9pm. of note are the silence breaks in
'fix', where you can hear the band's footsteps on stage. other numbers
like 'drive' and 'trapped' are getting cleaner as TR is directing band
members real-time on when and what to play.

challenges with the crew remain, as the runt frequently yells commands
redundantly to the monitor mixer. tonight, TR feels the need to make
eye contact, so he takes his WaT shades off half way through the 'Half'
set. here's where i can really get into TR's space. the shades take
away a lot of what's going on inside of his head.

need i mention the energy is still there? and, because this is LA,
TR tries a little harder to stick it to the industry in a more tangible
way than well-paying production jobs or a 'direct delivery model'.
the two-dozen fans and LA-style UFL totally rocking down front row didn't
seem to hurt either.

'hit me like a train' is again absent from the Half set.

set two starts early, around 11:05pm. hooray! TR's wearing black pants
and jacket, and a white polo shirt with royal blue hawaiian trim on sleeves,
collar and bottom. the voice of kasim sulton sounds like it's echoing
through the grand canyon.

a unique addition tonight is introductions. after gress' & ferenzik's
solo spot in 'synthesize', TR introduces them, then introduces kas and
prairie, citing he's not worthy among royalty of sultons and princes.

believe it or not, the venture capitalist's wife from santa barbara drove
down to LA for this gig and apparently thinks she really is part of the
show. she again scales the stage twice in set two for some harmless, but
selfish time with TR. "what do you think this is? Midnight at the
Apollo?" that chick needs a good head-surfing.

no 'lost horizon' tonight. the winners with the crowd are 'nnl' [as
the disco ball from 2nd Wind 'lotcm' makes an appearance], 'LitA', and
the motown medley. 'espresso' falls flat, as there's no room to dance.
hopefully, sunday night's show won't be as crowded.